I have noticed a pattern with product ratings that could lead to biased reviews. Is it legal?

The practice you have observed is commonly referred to as “review gating,” and it is not legal.

I have noticed that when I get an email inviting me to review a product or service I have purchased online or physically, if I select a high rating I am taken to Google to write a review. However, if I select a low rating, I am then told “We are sorry” etc and asked what is wrong. I am not taken to Google to write a review. This would lead to very biased reviews. Is this practice legal?– Tom, Queensland

Screening feedback based on a customer’s initial sentiment is known as “review gating.” It is a deceptive tactic common enough that Google has banned it entirely. While Australian consumer law does not name the practice explicitly, it is clearly prohibited under regulations concerning business reviews and false or misleading conduct.

In early 2026, Google implemented significant updates to its Maps User Generated Content policy. The updated guidelines state that Google does not allow businesses to “discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers”. The behavior you described appears to involve businesses doing both.

Google enforces real consequences for companies found to be violating its policy, so your experience is worth reporting directly to the platform. Penalties include the removal of non-compliant reviews, the placement of alerts or restrictions on business profiles, limitations on a business’s ability to receive new reviews, and the temporary hiding of historical feedback.

You can report suspicious reviews to Google directly through the Google Maps interface by selecting the three dots next to a review and choosing “report review.” You can also report a business by selecting “suggest an edit” on their Google Maps listing and choosing “Report business conduct.”

Australian consumer law also prohibits review-gating practices, even if not by name. This activity falls under the category of making “false and misleading representations,” which is illegal.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission states that a business may mislead consumers if it suppresses negative feedback. The process you described is clearly a method of burying negative reviews while promoting positive ones.

An example provided by the ACCC highlights a 2020 case involving Healthengine, which admitted to not publishing a large volume of negative reviews submitted between 2015 and 2018. It also admitted to editing out negative aspects from published reviews and misrepresenting why ratings weren’t published for some health providers to consumers.

Furthermore, the ACCC has previously reported that 37% of online businesses (in a sweep of 130) were manipulating online reviews. These businesses were found to have created fake positive reviews for themselves, or scrubbed negative reviews.

Given the ACCC’s focus on this issue, it is also worth reporting these businesses to the commission. While they may not act on your individual report, multiple complaints regarding the same business can help identify systemic issues that warrant further investigation.

Ultimately, the practice you have described is clearly illegal, so it is well worth bringing it to the attention of both Google and the relevant regulator.